THE PITUITARY BODY 



nant mare, etc.) can be secured .This was named "pituitary 

 synergist" by Evans and others. There is not satisfactory 

 evidence that this substance is different from what others 

 call "luteinizing hormone." Recent work has been reported 

 by Evans and Simpson (1935), Saunders and Cole (1935), 

 and Lein (1937), 



A number of substances, if injected with pituitary extract, 

 is capable of augmenting the action of pituitary gonado- 

 tropic hormone. In addition to tannic acid (recent studies by 

 Bischoff, 1937; and Fevold, Hisaw, and Greep, 1937) and 

 ZnS04 (recent studies by Saunders and Cole, 1935; Fevold, 

 Hisaw, and Greep, 1936; and Emery, 1937), which were previ- 

 ously known to have this action, approximately a dozen new 

 substances have been shown also to be effective. These in- 

 clude (CH3COO)2Cu and CUSO4 (Fevold, Hisaw, and Greep, 

 1936-37; Emery, 1937; and Pfeiffer, 1937), "Merthiolate" 

 (C2HsHgSC6H4COONa), a germicide (Chen and van Dyke, 

 1938), yeast extract and yeast ash (Fevold and others, 1936), 

 blood, hemoglobin, or heme (Casida, 1936; McShan and 

 Meyer, 1937), casein and egg-albumin (Saunders and Cole, 

 1935), and a miscellaneous group of substances only crudely 

 characterized (Hellbaum, 1936). 



Figure 17 illustrates how strikingly the gonadotropic effect 

 of an extract may be augmented by a foreign chemical mixed 

 with the extract before injection. Until there is better evi- 

 dence to the contrary, it is probable that this group of po- 

 tentiating substances acts by interfering with the absorption 

 of hormone, thus decelerating excretion (and possibly de- 

 struction) and prolonging the action of each dose." 



"Fevold, Hisaw, and Greep (19.36) were inclined to believe that CH,COOCu 

 catalyzes the synergistic effects of follicle-stimulating and luteinizing hormones. In 

 their earlier work, they reported that the intravenous injection of yeast extract 

 (10-15 "grams-equivalent") or (CH3COO)2Cu (lo mg.) can cause ovulation in the 

 rabbit. Pfeiffer (1937) concluded that the injection of a solution of CUSO4 has no 

 effect on gonadotropic hormone secreted by the rat's pituitary i>i situ. 



118 



